View source for Artificial scarcity/rival

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==About==
'''[[Artificial scarcity]] of [[rival resource]]s''' refers to the apparent fact that the world economy has sufficient capacity to produce enough for all basic human requirements, yet many people do not get enough to meet those requirements -- in other words, the existence of [[scarcity]] even though available technology and [[economic production|production]] capacity exists to create an abundance.
==Causes==
In addition to the general causes of artificial scarcity, with rival goods producers can also increase profit by attempting to create [[artificial needs]] -- the basis of [[consumerism]]. This often creates the appearance of shortages when those (unreal) needs cannot be met, and [[socially useless production|diverts production capacity]] away from genuine needs -- two more forms of artificial scarcity resulting from capitalism.<ref name=ws1 />
==Mechanisms==
In a market economic system, an abundance is not produced because excess product is considered an inefficient use of resources; those resources could be used elsewhere to produce something in greater demand to fulfill more wants.  A paradox is reached with artificially scarce products: an abundance is possible, yet without creating scarcity via legal or coercive means, there is minimal profitability for the creator (or the distributor) of the product. If scarcity is allowed to reach zero, the economic model is irrelevant. If natural scarcity no longer exists, scarcity has to be created to ensure a price system of supply and demand.<ref name=manageability />
==References==
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<ref name=ws1>http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/apr98/scarcity.html Artificial scarcity</ref>
<ref name=manageability>[http://www.manageability.org/blog/stuff/artificial-scarcity/view Artificial Scarcity, Garbage Collection and the Long Tail]}}</ref>
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